Galle has something special about it. It
is a blend of both the past and the present, the native and the colonial. It was
here that the first Portuguese fleet led by Laurenco De Almeida sailed into the
country nearly five centuries ago. It was here that the Dutch more than three
centuries ago built their famous ninety-acre fort which still retains its old
world charm with its high ramparts and ornate pepperpot towers. It was here that
cottage industries such as turtle-shell ware, ebony ornaments and beeralu lace
flourished about a century or so ago before gradually declining or passing into
oblivion. Galle was no doubt once a leading centre of the native arts and
crafts.

Native firearms

Housed in an old Dutch period building in
the heart of Galle Fort, the Galle National Museum represents all that is Galle.
Colonial weaponry, indigenous crafts or folk arts, it has it all. Here one will
find a variety of Portuguese and Dutch swords including a rare Dutch cavalier
sword as well as stone cannon balls dating back to Dutch times. Besides these,
one could come across some interesting specimens of native firearms including a
heavy double-barreled pistol manufactured by some ingenious Sinhalese smith as
well as some gunpowder flasks of about the same period. There are besides these,
a beautiful battle axe made of brass and iron said to be about two centuries old
as well as a mugura or wooden club about a century or so old.

Extinct craft

Old Dutch swords

As for native handicrafts, a great
variety are represented here. These include turtle-shell ware including an
antique jewellery box, spectacle frames, combs and bangles, all made of
turtle-shell. There are besides these, a rare turtle-shell fan as well as nemi
pana or bent combs made of turtle shell which were widely worn by the Sinhalese
Muhandirams of yore as a head ornament. Also on display are various moulds for
making turtle shell ware including moulds for jewellery boxes, spoons and
bangles. This now extinct craft involved heating the turtle shells until they
softened after which they were cut into little pieces and placed in a mould to
obtain the desired shape. Manufacturing items out of turtle shell is no longer
possible as turtles have been declared a protected species, so that one cannot
easily come across such items these days. Beeralu lace

Lace crochet dated 1903

Also displayed here are an assortment of
beeralu lace from the area including Samanala lace, Bakinimal lace and Gavum
Karamal lace. Besides these is an old hand-made pillow lace crochet dated 1903.
The art of lace-making was introduced by the Portuguese and has been
traditionally handed down from mother to daughter.

It still survives in Galle and Weligama
though not on a scale one would have expected to find it a century or so ago.

Another little known industry which once
thrived in Galle but today survives only in Kalegana is carved ebony ornaments,
a few old specimens of which are displayed in the museum including a box and a
figurine of an elephant.

Old masks

Moor plates with red crescent

Galle was once well-known for its folk
drama such as Kolam and it is not surprising therefore that one should come
across a variety of old masks representing characters such as the Gamarala,
Panikkale, Liyana Appu, Nonchi Akka, Nekati man, tiger and jackal. Besides these
comical characters, one would come across masks of ferocious-looking demons such
as Gara Yaka and Gurulu Raksha used in Tovil or exorcism ceremonies.

Also on display in a glass case is the
official garb of a Sinhalese Muhandiram which may well go back to over a
century. It includes a black coat, somana cloth, kastana sword and the Nemi
Panava or bent comb worn as a head ornament.

Porcelain plates

An old pitcher

Among the other interesting exhibits may
be included an old kokis mould and other moulds for preparing sweetmeats dating
back to the Dutch period, a Petetiya or water clock made of copper and shaped
like a coconut shell with a hole in the middle and an assortment of vadimbu or
eave tiles with engraven figures of goose, elephant and stylised lion used as
far back as the 18th century.

Other miscellaneous items include a
serakkale or brass stand for partaking of rice by important personages, a behet
karakaya or pill box used by native physicians and embroidered betel bags
belonging to about the 17th to 19th centuries. Also fascinating are the
colourful porcelain plates with a crescent in red used by the Moors of the area
in the olden days.